I was a winner, then I wasn't

basketball_joan

New member
I got the email saying I was one of the winners for the Android Headlines Holiday Tech Giveaway. I replied with the information they needed, then nothing. I sent follow-up emails, and still nothing. When I finally got a reply, they said they didn't get the reply to the first email within 48 hours, and they chose another winner, but I pointed out that I had replied a few hours after receiving the first email, and it was right at the top of the email chain. Their reply basically amounted to oh well, it must have gone to spam, sucks to be you, and I don't think I've ever encountered that kind of response from any marketing entity running a sweep.

Well, that was that. I suppose I'm more peeved than anything about how that ultimately worked out.
 
Wow! I'm so sorry that happened! That is always my biggest nightmare with email replies. It is not uncommon for the company to never reply to your response email. When this happens, and its a big win, I freak out! I will often send a quick and polite second email saying that I haven't heard back and I hope they have all of the information they need. It is not uncommon for this second email to also get ignored and the prize just shows up eventually.
Ultimately, I try to tell myself that you haven't won until you actually have the prize. Until then, its just a "maybe" win.
So sorry :(
 
I'm so sorry that happened to you. It's happened to me multiple times. I won an instant win last summer from Peroni Nastro Azzuro that I never received. I sent them an email and they replied and said that I never won. I responded with a screenshot of the winner screen and the winning email I got after I won. They basically told me too bad, there was nothing they could do. It was a prize worth $140 so it really sucked not getting it.

Then, last month, I got an email saying that the winner of a blog giveaway never responded so I was the 2nd chance winner. I replied right away with my information and never heard back. I've asked them twice if they got my information and/or when I can expect to get the prize and haven't gotten a reply to any of the emails I sent. I'm not sure if I'm the winner or not. The prize is a crochet kit and I love to crochet. I'm going to be pretty disappointed if I don't get it. I think I might post a comment on their blog and see if I can get their attention that way.

The only time I've ever gotten a company to change their mind was when I complained on social media. I won a coupon for a free Butterfinger candy bar and it never came. When I emailed them about it, they told me that they already sent out all the prizes and there was nothing they could do. I complained publicly on Butterfinger's Twitter account and they DM'd me and said that they were going to send me the prize. They ended up sending me 3 coupons for Butterfinger bars and a coupon to try the new ice cream bars. Maybe you could try posting a message on Android Headlines socials and see if they will change their mind. If not, at least it will warn others that they don't play by the rules.
 
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